


they never know

by stcrdust



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Minor Injuries, just little cuts and bruises, renjun is in a fight club, that are covered by moomin bandaids perhaps, they just love each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:14:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26100214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stcrdust/pseuds/stcrdust
Summary: “If by system, you mean the thing where you go to fight club meetings and watch me beat up guys twice my size to save up for your uni tuition, then yes, that system did take a bit of tweaking before it was perfect.”Xuxi raises an eyebrow, “I don’t think anything can be perfect in a situation that involves you getting beat up.”in which xuxi fixes up renjun.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas
Comments: 10
Kudos: 62





	they never know

**Author's Note:**

> hello and welcome to my debut fic for the nct ficdom! this started out as an random few sentences i wrote at 3 am one day and ended up as an entire fic with an underlying subplot that could possibly lead to a longer fic :') as things usually go for me... anyways, i'm very excited to now officially be in the nct fic writing scene, and look forward to seeing me in fic fests and in the renmin tag in the future! for now, i hope you enjoy the fic ^_^ 
> 
> beta'd by the lovely [cas](https://twitter.com/lixie_and_stuff)!!

Renjun winces and grits his teeth when Xuxi holds a cotton pad dipped in antiseptic up to his lip, a gentle hand resting on the back of his head to keep him from pulling it back. His face is littered with cuts and bruises, and there are bandaids on his face where Xuxi had already cleaned him up. The other takes great care in making sure the process of disinfecting and cleaning up his cuts is as painless as possible, fingers threading reassuringly through Renjun’s fluffy, cotton candy pink hair, but goddamn, did Renjun hate the sting of disinfectant that was currently sending waves of slight pain through his lower lip.

“I won.” Renjun mumbles, his lips moving gingerly, afraid to reopen the wound on his lip and further trouble Xuxi. The taller simply hums and continues nursing Renjun’s wounds, placing a small Moomin-themed bandaid on top of one of the smaller cuts on his cheek. 

“The money from the fight’s going to be sent to our account tomorrow.” Renjun is noticeably louder this time, to which Xuxi simply places a finger on his lover’s lips, accompanying the action with a gentle peck, gently so that his lips barely ghost over the other’s. It leaves Renjun with flushed cheeks, keeping still so that Xuxi can get to work on bandaging up his bruised, previously bleeding knuckles.

“I’m glad you won, Renjun, I really am, but you really almost got done in! I swear I was going to have a heart attack when I saw you bleeding from your nose and lip simultaneously. Not to mention you had a limp for a good half of the fight!” Xuxi’s words are laced with concern as he finishes wrapping a bandage around Renjun’s left hand, his expression practically oozing with worry as he pouts down at Renjun, who looks up at him from where he’s sitting and sighs quietly. He had really gone and chose the giant puppy for a boyfriend.

“Well… Sorry for worrying you,” Renjun says, scratching at one of the baby blue colored bandaids on his chin with his free hand, scrunching his cheeks to rid himself of the itchy feeling that the sticky adhesive gave him, “but you know I do this for us. Nothing else.”

“Well, duh. But I hate seeing you all beat up like this! It just makes me want to… to beat up the guys that beat you up, or something!! I don’t know.”

“That’s my job, babe.”

“Then I’ll… give them a stern talking to on why they shouldn’t beat up my beautiful boyfriend!” Xuxi declares with an oddly large amount of determination in his voice. “But seriously… A pretty face like yours shouldn’t be covered in Moomin bandaids all the time, as cute as that is!”

“I’ve been doing this since I was little, Xuxi. Fighting’s in my blood. And being able to fight for you?” Renjun grabs the other’s hand with his own, bandage-covered hand and intertwines their fingers. “It makes me happy, no matter what.”

“You’d better stop the minute you think it’s too much. Just because I want to be a doctor absolutely does not mean you have to go hurting yourself for it!” Xuxi checks over Renjun one more time, hand brushing past his arms and peeking under the plain t-shirt that Renjun was currently wearing for any stray cuts or bruises.

“Hey, at least you get some experience?” Renjun comments, a bit sheepishly as he looks up at Xuxi with a small smile, and sparkling eyes that make Xuxi’s heart shatter into pieces. He holds back from scooping up Renjun in his arms and begins to put the medical supplies back in the drawer where they came from, keeping the box of bandaids set on the night table next to their bed in case any need reapplying.

“I really can’t believe I thought your fight club was a taekwondo class at first,” Xuxi says exasperatedly as he sits back in his seat, gaze scanning over Renjun one last time (just to make sure!) before standing up and helping Renjun up, who was already beginning to rise from the chair across from him.

“I’ve got it, I’ve got it.” Renjun looks like he wants to roll his eyes as he playfully pushes at Xuxi’s chest, which doesn’t even make him budge from his spot as the two walk over to the bed. Renjun’s limp is much less noticeable, though from Xuxi’s perspective, it is hard to tell, especially when the bed is a mere five feet away from where they’d previously been, but it’s enough for him to let out a relieved breath as he follows him. 

Xuxi climbs in when Renjun begins to settle under the covers, making sure to slip his shirt off so he wouldn’t get hot after he falls asleep, despite the fact that the fan was running at medium blast. Otherwise he tends to wake up in the middle of the night after he falls asleep cuddling Renjun, purely because the warmth of the blankets, his boyfriend, and his own body heat got a bit too toasty for his liking. Simple, optimal Renjun-cuddling tactics! 

  
  


“What the hell, your hands are so cold,” is the first thing Renjun mumbles to Xuxi when he wraps his arms around him, fingers dipping under his shirt to trace gentle shapes over the smooth surface of his stomach. Renjun jumps at the touch, shocked for just a moment from the temperature of his hands, before settling quickly into it, placing his smaller hands atop Xuxi’s.

“You’re just really warm,” Xuxi says with a chuckle as he buries his head in the crook of Renjun’s neck, planting a gentle kiss on the skin. His body practically encases the other’s, spooning him as Renjun traces his hand over his thumb, the familiar, rhythmic rise and fall of Xuxi’s chest soothing to the smaller boy.

“I love you,” Renjun whispers quietly, turning around to look at Xuxi in the dim lighting of their bedroom, their only source of light being the small lamp on the night table, a keepsake that Xuxi had bought on their first vacation as a couple. Xuxi’s eyes sparkle despite the lack of light, and Renjun almost thinks he can light up the room himself with the way he smiles at him.

“I know. You really love me! And guess what?” Xuxi asks with a large smile. Renjun raises a questioning eyebrow. “I love you too!!” 

Renjun can’t help but giggle softly to himself from the other’s endearingly enthusiastic nature, a sound that brings Xuxi unbridled joy as he scoots a little closer to the other, reaching over Renjun’s small frame so that he can switch the lamp off and let his eyes relax in the darkness.

“But really, I love you. I don’t think I could be fighting for anyone else,” Renjun mumbles, his words accompanied by the sudden patter of rain against the singular window in their bedroom. The rain comes gently, raindrops sliding down the window, lit up by passing cars and streetlights. The city never sleeps, but that doesn’t mean that Xuxi and Renjun can’t.

“When I met you at that restaurant I worked at and spilled water all over your pants, I really thought you were going to punch my 6 foot tall self right in the face. But hey, I guess my words got through to you because here I am, a few dates and bandaids later.” Xuxi yawns after he speaks, pulling Renjun even closer to himself. Renjun snuggles his face in the crook of his neck, fingertips tracing over his bare abdomen. 

“I would have punched you if you hadn’t started panicking and backing away like a little puppy. You ran so fast to get napkins and towels, it was kinda cute.” The reminiscing makes Renjun feel nostalgic, and Xuxi can feel the way his mouth curls up into a smile against his shoulder. “And your little puppy self saw through all of my flaws, my impulsive, fiery flaws, and you managed to not only befriend me, but become my boyfriend. What kind of magic did you pull on me? I wanna know.”

The sentence prompts a laugh from Xuxi, his chest light with a vague feeling of giddiness. “You’re asking me that like I’m supposed to know, Junnie. I just thought ‘boy cute, must date!’ and next thing you know, I’m here!” 

“God, you’re seriously impossible to figure out…”

“You don’t have to figure me out just yet, you know.” Xuxi traces the side of Renjun’s cheek gently, a tender action that makes Renjun’s heart beat a bit faster in the darkness as he looks at the outline of the other’s face. “We’re still figuring things out, right? This whole… system we have going? It took a few tries, didn’t it?” Renjun’s laughter echoes through the room, a smile making its way onto his face as his eyes crinkle up— a rare treasure that Xuxi likes to cherish when he can.

“I can’t believe you called it a _system_ , you’re such a nerd.” Renjun can’t mask the smile that overtakes his face, even as he lifts a hand to pat the smile out of himself. Xuxi watches him with an enamoured gaze and a pearly white smile that seems to shine in the darkness. “If by system, you mean the thing where you go to fight club meetings and watch me beat up guys twice my size to save up for your uni tuition, then yes, that system did take a bit of tweaking before it was perfect.” 

Xuxi raises an eyebrow, “I don’t think anything can be perfect in a situation that involves you getting beat up.” His hand drifts over the side of Renjun’s face again, feeling the way his fingertips ride over the bandaids placed there. 

“Like I said, I don’t mind doing this. It’s for you, silly— hey, ow!” Renjun winces when Xuxi’s hand drifts down, down, down, and presses gently on a bruise painted purple on his hip. His hand reflexively darts to grab Xuxi’s, grip relaxing when he stops pressing, opting instead to dip his fingers under Renjun’s shirt, hand gliding over the soft skin, a familiar and reassuring comfort that Xuxi confides in. 

“You know I hate seeing you hurt like this, right? I swear I’ve said that a thousand times.” Xuxi’s voice is surprisingly quiet, gaze distant as his free hand brushes locks of pink hair away from Renjun’s face, his eyes brimming with pure concern. Renjun sighs and continues to trace absentmindedly over Xuxi’s chest, knowing it was a topic that seemed to come up more often that it really should.

“I know… You tell me this everyday. But the fight club isn’t something I can just… quit, you know? It’s not easy to.” Renjun’s eyes are sad, a tinge of regret flickering in his expression. “This is how I keep you safe. How I kept myself and my family safe and fed. So don’t worry too much. Alright?” Fingertips brush through soft, thin hair back to reveal Xuxi’s still-worried expression in the darkness, his breathing even and rhythmic between sighs. 

It’s a conversation that comes up every now and then when Renjun gets seriously hurt during fights-- always a bit of a problem, but never one to be solved. Renjun couldn’t imagine anything beyond the fight club, nor could he remember anything before it. It’s a passion, an obligation, and a weakness all in one. 

Renjun continues despite the silence from Xuxi, “I may have my weaknesses, but you’re my strength. That’s what my opponents don’t know. They see me and think: ‘Well, he’s tiny. He’ll be an easy win.’ But what they don’t know is that I have someone I’m fighting for. Most people in the fight club don’t. That’s why they’re there.” He pauses, looking down.

“That’s why I was there too, at one point… Because I thought I had nothing left.”

Renjun looks back up, eyes still adjusting and straining to see Xuxi in the light (or lack thereof). The fight club arena is bright, too bright, with lights that make you feel like a single child standing on a theater stage, with every single stage light pointed in your direction, the audience barely visible, overshadowed by the overwhelming brightness. It makes adjusting his eyes to the darkness difficult at times. 

Fighting in the fight club has always been like performing on a stage, really. Every Saturday, Renjun has to step into the arena, ready to put on his tough act and act stronger than last week. He has to fight like he hasn’t fallen down a million times, hasn’t been punched in the face a thousand more times, hasn’t been punched in the gut just as many. He has to act like he wants to be there, like he wants to land punches and sweep ankles, and he has to act like his physical state isn’t slowly deteriorating as a result of constant injuries. 

Renjun would be a star actor if he hadn’t joined the fight club. 

And the rest of the world may never know of his five star act. Even Xuxi, who sits in front of him, who _knows_ that deep down, this isn’t what Renjun wants to do, and Renjun’s heart aches because he knows this is what he has to do. He has nothing _but_ fighting power flowing through his veins, every last bit of him determined to get back up no matter how many times he falls, no matter how many bandaids he collects on his face, no matter how many bruises appear on his body. It’s Xuxi that fuels him, keeps him fighting, but he’s also, for the first time in Renjun’s life, made him reconsider the fight club.

  
  


Renjun hopes that Xuxi can’t see his conflicted expressions as he buries his head in the other’s shoulders once again, wrapping an arm around him, his hand skimming over his bare skin absentmindedly. Xuxi’s breathing is even, rhythmic, and threatens to lull Renjun to sleep, his eyelids already beginning to feel heavy as he sinks further into his embrace.

“Thank you for being something to me, Xuxi.” Renjun’s words ring loud and clear in the midnight gloom that sets over the bedroom, and with a deep sigh, he closes his eyes, finally succumbing to the drowsiness and fatigue that had been looming over him since the two had come home from the fight of the night.

Xuxi looks down at Renjun’s sleeping figure with a fond smile, knowing it had been a long and rough day. He holds him close as though he were the most delicate piece of antique China in his mother’s tea collection, placing a tender kiss right in the middle of his head, lingering for just a few moments to breathe in the smell that Xuxi had gotten so accustomed to. 

“You’re always welcome, _baobei_. Good night.”

Xuxi’s eyes flutter close, calmed by the silence that spreads through the bedroom when he stops talking, lulled to sleep by Renjun’s breathing, which stays perfectly synced with his own as the two drift off to the land of dreams.

**Author's Note:**

> be sure to drop a kudos and/or let me know what you thought! thank you for reading!  
>   
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/strdusting)  
> [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/stilldreaming)


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